Overview: Voting Law Changes In 2012
Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law
A shift that could change the electoral landscape is underway -- the tightening of restrictions on who can vote and how Americans can vote. Going into the 2012 elections, there will be millions of Americans who will find that since 2008, there are new barriers that could prevent them from voting.
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* These new laws could make it significantly harder for more than five million eligible voters to cast ballots in 2012.
How many people voted in 2008 anyways ?
Well according to the NY Times:
Election Results 2008 -- December 09, 2008
66,862,039 [Obama]
58,319,442 [McCain]
125,181,481 [Total]
So if the new Voter ID laws could prevent about five million from voting in 2012 -- What is the percentage out of total voters, effected?
5,000,000 / 125,181,481 x 100 =
3.99%
4 Percent of the people may lose their right to vote -- all in the name of "preventing Voter Fraud." That's the GOP Solution.
How big a problem is the supposed "Voter Fraud" problem anyways?
Well according to Brennan Center for Justice, it's minuscule. Microscopic.
Policy Brief on the Truth About “Voter Fraud” -- Analysis
Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law -- Updated September 2006
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Fraud by individual voters is both irrational and extremely rare. Most citizens who take the time to vote offer their legitimate signatures and sworn oaths with the gravitas that this hard-won civic right deserves. Even for the few who view voting merely as a means to an end, however, voter fraud is a singularly foolish way to attempt to win an election. Each act of voter fraud risks five years in prison and a $10,000 fine -- but yields at most one incremental vote. The single vote is simply not worth the price.
Because voter fraud is essentially irrational, it is not surprising that no credible evidence suggests a voter fraud epidemic. There is no documented wave or trend of individuals voting multiple times, voting as someone else, or voting despite knowing that they are ineligible. Indeed, evidence from the microscopically scrutinized 2004 gubernatorial election in Washington State actually reveals just the opposite: though voter fraud does happen, it happens approximately 0.0009% of the time. The similarly closely-analyzed 2004 election in Ohio revealed a voter fraud rate of 0.00004%. National Weather Service data shows that Americans are struck and killed by lightning about as often.
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3.99% / 0.00004% =
99,750
Their ALEC-created Solution is nearly 100K times BIGGER than the supposed Voter Fraud problem, itself.
Amazing! Talk about relying on 'Big Government' solutions. That's our GOP.
For every loon like James O'Keefe, willing to take on the Felony Risks of actually committing Voter Fraud, 100,000 law-abiding citizens MUST be hindered from Voting, in the manner that they are accustom to, that they have done, all their lives ???
THAT is the GOP's 4% Percent Solution, for a problem that happens as infrequent as lightning-strike deaths.
Guess what America, We've been struck! BLAM!
We are in the process of being Disenfranchised -- Don't Blink!
We had better duck-&-cover ... the specter of Alberto Gonzales has spoken.
Can I vote .org ... find out.